could get hung up. something like that could hold the throttle open. >> the uncle of marcus and the father of chase issued this statement saying in part, quote, there are no words to express our sore roe. >> our family has been racing for four generations and loves the sport that has now brought us so much pain. chase johnson is a senior at petaluma high school. just 17 but has won 140 races including last year's sprint car championship. he wasn't hurt in this weekend's accident. autopsies will be conducted on marcus and the other victim. we will talk about why marcus was even in the pit in the first place, because he was not an official member of his cousin's crew. >> thank you very much, marla. >> 6:02. the man accused of stealing a luxury yacht from the salsa lee ta harbor is expected to return to court for a preliminary

hearing. prosecutors say he stole the 80-foot, 82-foot sailboat, darling, and ended up beaching it in pacifica. he is being held on $1 million bail. the oakland police department is working on a brand new way to fight crime. the department will talk about a plan to redistrict switching from the current format of two to simply one made up of five smaller districts. that first would be in east oakland and should be in place by saturday. east district would be managed by two police captains who would then be responsible for community outreach and officer deployment. they would report ultimately to chief howard jordan. the department feels this is the best way to deal with crime considering it's limited number of officers. starting this morning, b.a.r.t. begins a test run for passengers who ride bikes. christie smith live with details.

>> reporter: good morning. we just took a look inside the mcarthur b.a.r.t. station. the signs are up. they are flashing this morning letting everyone know that you are likely to see a whole lot more bikes on the train all week. this is actually the second test that bart has done on expanded action s access for bicycles. instead of one day a week, it is all week even during the busy commute. cyclists are asked not to use the first three cars during the morning and evening rush. they are only allowed on trains basically outside of the peak hours because the trains get so crowded. i just spoke with one rider who told us what he would like to see to try and please everybody. >> this is great. i like it. i wish -- what they need is a separate car for all bikes. >> reporter: why do you say that? >> that way, you don't have to deal with the other riders. one car for all bikes and then get your bike and go.

>> reporter: i'm not sure if that idea would work but we are going to ask one of the b.a.r.t. directors about that a little later. since the pilot, b.a.r.t. is reconfiguring some trains to make more space and offer more secure bike parking. feedback is really important to guide the next steps for b.a.r.t. there is a survey that is up next. the result will go to the board of directors an then they will decide what will happen next, whether or not this may become permanent. reporting live in oakland, christie smith, "today in the bay." it is 6:05. let's check in with meteorologist, christina loren. sunshine today. rain tomorrow. it has been so warm with the big rig of high pressure just not budging. temperatures are improving significantly. we are getting closer to average for this time of year. we have two days of winter left. first official day is wednesday. 41 degrees in livermore right now, first official day of

spring. 40, gilroy, 44 in san jose. we have a beautiful day shaping up for your outdoor plans. you want to get outdoors if you can, because, come tomorrow afternoon, your opportunities aren't going to be as robust. we have rain moving in at about 3:00 p.m. i am going to time it out and give you an idea when the showers hit your house. good to moderate air quality all across the bay area. you probably noticed the haze over the weekend. happy to report the good air quality region all weekend long. if you have the windows open, today, do the same. 69 degrees at the coast. that rain moves in as of tomorrow. to time that out, my next report will let you know how much snow is on the way to tahoe. our chances are slimming when it comes to heading up there for the fresh powder. we want to talk about that coming up. 6:06. let's talk to mike and see how the drive is shaping up on a monday. >> it is shaping up. in the south bay, we are looking over here as we are seeing more cars. the commute does take shape north of 680 on the 101. orange and yellow kicking in.

southbound 880 slowing a bit as you are heading down past the 87. watching over here, westbound 237, a crash also as you are coming over towards sunnyvale. no slowing at the scene. things seem like they are okay. we will track that. we have a big slowdown right now taking in some activity for the crash has caused a distraction as the commute kicked in. big slowing from highway 84 to the isabelle exchange toward the earlier crash which has now cleared. we have more slowing heading through pleasanton for 84. we will see if things are really bogging down. that cob an issue if you are headed over towards 680. the bay bridge toll plaza, cash lane, fast-track, still an advantage for another few minutes until they turn the metering lights on. a south bay hardware store with a long history could be

coming down in the near future. the orchard supply store on san carlo street was built in 1946. it was the chain's flagship store. the company wants to tear it down and build a new store on the same lot. first, they need a permit. a community hearing is scheduled for tonight to discuss those development plans. here is an interesting fact. the loss where the hardware store now stands was once the site of fidelity park that hosted a baseball exhibition game that included babe ruth, lou gehrig and lefty o'doole. >> cool little piece of trivia. good news for drivers. palo alto city council looking for a solution to the city's parking problems. residents say parking has reached saturation. things are also about to get worse as new downtown developments continue. according to parking enforcements, the palo alto city council will soon begin considering several different proposals, including more spots for permit holders at two city

garages along with a possible valet program at another garage and putting parking restrictions in residential neighborhoods and building a new parking structure. 6:09. coming up, a dramatic jail break with a james bond kind of twist. how a helicopter helped a couple of inmates make their escape. keeping track of your taxi no matter where it goes. they may have to let you tag along with your cap before you step aside. taking a live look outside and a look at the bay bridge this morning. it appears to be moving smoothly. mike keeping tabs on that. on this monday morning, a lot more ahead. stick around, 6:09. for your first day?

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welcome back. good monday morning. a live look at 880. looks like traffic is picking up a bit. it is 6:12. we have new video this morning, a scary scene. 35 cabins engulfed in flames in the pigeon forge area of tennessee. today, the national guard flying in a couple of helicopters to try and help drench those flames. the fire started as a house fire on sunday. it has since spread to more than 2:30 acres. so far, the silver lining, good news here, no word of any injuries. this morning, still no clear answer about why a bus crashed into a tree in pennsylvania killing a popular college lacrosse coach and her unborn child. last night, a memorial service was held at seton hall for 30-year-old christina quigley. quigley was one of 23 people aboard that bus heading to a game 50 miles away when it crashed into a tree saturday morning on the pennsylvania

turnpike. the bus driver also died in that crash. safety inspectors say there are no accidents or violations involving the bus company that would raise a red flag. we have more detalls this morning about what i guess you would call the 007 prison break from quebec, canada. a couple of inmates back in custody after escaping by climbing up a rope into a hovering helicopter in a jail northwest of montreal. one inmate and two other people were arrested sunday. the second inmate surrendered early this morning after barricading himself inside of a building. the helicopter pilot right now is being treated at a local hospital for shock. >> the extreme escape. this is as unique as you might think. in 1986, a prisoner painted nectarines to look like grenades and made his way to the the roof of a prison in paris where his wife picked him up in a helicopter. he later died in a failed bank

robbery. in 1971, a helicopter picked up a new yorker for a failed business from a mexican prison yard. that inspired the 1975 movie, breakout. in 2009, a helicopter helped two inmates escape a mabs mum security near athens, greece. they hijacked and ordered the helicopter to whoever above the prison. one of the inmates is reportedly still at-large. those are things that they try to get away with and sometimes really do. >> a lot of criminals sound like they are action film movie stars. a north bay family mourning the loss of their 14-year-old son, marcus johnson, who died in a crash in a racetrack in ma marysville. his cousin was driving warmup laps when he crashed into the

pit where marcus was standing the supreme court is set to hear a controversial law of people having to provide proof of citizenship before fraud. proponents say the state is overstepping its bound. final preparations underway for a mass at the vatican where pope francis will be official cly installed as the leader of the catholic church. troubled actress, lindsay lohan, is set to go on trial in l.a. accused of lying to police at the scene of a car crash last june. lohan reportedly claimed to be a passenger in the car when she was actually the driver. she is facing jail time if convicted and she is pleading not guilty. there may be another billionaire eyeing michael bloomberg's mayor seat in new york city. it is an interview. an interview sunday. quitter co-founder, jack dorsey, says he wants to be mayor of new york city one day. dorsey telling 60 minutes he is very serious about have mooing

to the big apple someday and running for mayor. the web developer is known for his mobile payment start-up square. he is ranked number 392 on forbes 400 wealthiest list. america's list, they list bloomberg at number 10. the san francisco symphony canceling more concerts, part of an ongoing strike between musicians and management over a contract strike. also canceled is a three-day tour at carnegie hall. they were lost when the picket lines went up last week. if you bought any tickets for any canceled concerts, we are told you can actually exchange them for an upcoming event or receive a refund. >> that's good news. 6:16 right now. christine lorne is back to tell us about a good-looking day and prepare for something tomorrow. calm conditions today and then a symphony of weather. you will hear the wind moving

through. the russelli the rustling of the wind and the pit ter pat ter of the drops. we are expecting pretty significant rainfall for the first day of spring. wednesday, mark your calendar, the day not so great for outdoor plans. the before the rain moves in, we will time that out for you in a minute. san jose, beautiful-looking day shaping up, mostly clear. you can see the mountains in the distance. we don't have any fog to get in your way. you might find some xwrach coastal fog. 44 in san jose, 39, bill roy. 41 in livermore. we are not worried about thick pockets of fog in the east bay. it is not cold enough for frost. as we head throughout the next couple of days, things are going to change. weather back in the mix in the bay area. we still have that clock for you at 8:00 a.m. mostly clear conditions will persist for today. between noon and 5:00 p.m., those clouds will increase.

mostly cloudy to finish off. winds picking up. the first significant rainfall doesn't move into the north bay until 3:00 p.m. tomorrow. we will continue those rain showers all across the bay area widespread until about 6:00 a.m. wednesday. a lot of this is going to come down while you are sleeping tuesday night. over the course of wednesday, we will see on and off scattered showers throughout the day by 10:00 p.m., a nice break. an opportunity for dryer and warmer weather will will persist throughout the weekend. good-looking weekend for your outdoor plan. spring break is happening throughout the bay area. they are kind of scattered around. if you want to make outdoor plans, go ahead and do so. san jose is out this friday for spring break. 70 in livermore. we head through the next couple days, that rain moves in. as fast as it comes in, it heads out. a lot of sunshine on tap. temps warming back up into the 70s. let's check your drive. >> hey, folks, as jon and laura showed you, 880 in fremont past

the truck scales, you see the volume kicking in down here. this is the south coming toward me. as you head towards milpitas and the rest of the south bay, it is starting to build down here. an earlier crash that blocked one lane at the wrong time before they could clear it. that's what caused all this slowing heading up. the maps are clear as you are passing out of livermore. over into livermore, we have a backup. tas ripples back towards highway 84, we are seeing the secondary affect. speeds are slowing down. cutting through livermore. as the congestion builds over here. people bail over towards first and they come down through livermore trying to come down through the backup. a smooth drive right here. the earlier slowing we've had for eastbound 24 back to the normal schedule. things are nice getting out of oakland now here through the east shore freeway. west 80 picks up the volume.

nothing unexpected. backup at the toll plaza, live look there as we have the meter lights turned on. for all the lane, the east shore freeway is okay for those speeds. expect that to show slowing through richmond and berkry coming up in the next 15 minutes. back to you. >> the global stage is set at at&t as the netherlands take on the dominican republic in a world baseball classic. it happens tonight at 6:00. today's winner will appear in tuesday's final against puerto rico. we celebrate a 3-1 win against japan. thousands of fans came out to watch the game and to support giants outfielder angel pagan, who was one of the heroes for the puerto rican team. >> so many puerto ricans, i have to tip my hat. there are a lot of puerto ricans over here. i have to thank them. for them to come over here and support us, it means a lot. >> pretty exciting. the final game in the world baseball class he can will be

held on tuesday night. by the way, if you want tickets to tonight's game, they are going for as little as $5 each. go to worldbaseballclassic.com for all the details. time to get the brackets out and fill them in. the madness is here. eight college basketball teams are on the way to san jose for the big dance. we take a live look at the hp pavilion that will play host to the tournament on thursday. new mexico state versus st. louis at 11:10. oregon takes on oklahoma state. that tips off at 1:40. cal versus unlv, the local golden bears go to work at 4:27 and montana takes on syracuse, the orangemen at 6:57. the winners will play in the next rount saturday at the hp pavilion. the times will be announced later on. in the meantime, st. mary's gaels, they have to get some work done.

they have a playing game in dayton, ohio on tuesday at 6:10. they take on middle tennessee state. i know you are sending out the magic, feeling the good vibrations for your gales. you have the banner at your desk. are you going to start parading around with that? >> there we go. 6:22. coming up, the barista voted one of the bess in the the southwest. where you can go to sample it. tracking taxis. we will let you know and how you can keep track of your cab's every move.

welcome back. going live to san francisco. it stays dark a little longer and gives us a spectacular picturesque look. 6:25. soon, you could be able to track the exact location of every available taxi driver in san francisco just by using your smart phone. the city is proposing a new law that would force cab drivers to transmit their coordinants as part of the network. any smart app that connects them with cabs would have to use that data from the network. it is in response to the growing popularity of transportation services not run by the city,

including uber, list. >> along with that popular app, san francisco host to one of the best baristas in the southwest, kevin be kevin bohlin, this weekend. he congratulated the first place winner. he said, quote, wish i could have tasted your expresso. each competitor had 15 minutes to make 12 drinks, four express soes, four cappuccinos and four specialty drinks and they were judged on how well they cleaned up their machine after use. >> i would love to be a judge. >> you are a coffee fan. >> huge, huge. >> industrial size. >> i would say. >> this is a small one. >> that's my second for the day. it is 6:26. still ahead, is your commute about to go around in a circle. the change that could throw you for a loop. >> plus, a deadly end to an east bay street race.

we will show you how these guys were showing off that may have cost a motorcyclist his life. >> air traffic control towers about to be shut down nationwise. we will tell you which bay area airports could be getting their wings clipped. >> a live look outside. that is the bay bridge. traffic starting to back up there at the toll plaza. mike inouye will be along with the specific details. christina talking about a nice day before the rain sets in. we are back on "today in the bay."

shutting down air traffic controls brings questions about who will be calling the shot in the sky. a deadly end to dangerous driving in the east bay. how a street racing stunt may have cost the life of a motorcyclist. right on time, live to new york city to the new york stock exchange. we will see how the markets

bounced back having a nice run ten days straight of a record. we'll see what's happening today now that that is over. we'll see how people are going to react to all that good news. today is monday, march 18th. this is "today in the bay." from nbc bay area, "today in the bay." good monday morning. it is 6:30. i'm jon kelley. >> i'm laura garcia cannon. final word from the faa on which airport control towers will clothes. there could be some bay area names. the closures are in response to the sequester cuts from the federal government that slashes money from the faa. they will be at airports with fewer than 150,000 flights per year. control towers in napa, concord, livermore, stockton and santa rosa are on the list. however, the closures could be stopped before they are put into place. it all depends on a crucial vote

in the senate. "today in the bay's" daniel lee is on capitol hill this morning. she takes us inside the beltway with a look at what does that say? today, the senate is going to vote on a temporary budget to fund the government through the rest of the fiscal year. within that budget is an amendment that they could pass. what that does is give the faa power to take $50 million intended for research and capital funds and move it to save these control towers. this is what we are seeing across the board with a lot of these programs being affected by the sequester. senators and also the house are giving these departments more power to decide where to implement the cuts. right now, they are across the board cuts. the senate is going to vote on this budget today. over the weekend, they had to sort through about 100 similar amendments before they could vote on this bill. then, they are going to send it back down to the house. the house had earlier passed a more simpler form of the bill to house speaker, john boehner, says he is going to wait to see

how this bill turns out before he comments on whether or not he thinks it will pass the house. they have to pass a temporary budget by march 27th to avoid a government shutdown. once they get passed that deadline, they are not going to rush. they have to turn stralt ight t can looking at next year's budget. democrats want new revenue. republicans are sticking to their guns to see significant cuts. they want the compromise, the path toward compromise is not quite clear. laura, some news this morning. the republican national committee is out with some changes they are planning to make after struggling in last year's election. among the notable things that they are mentioning, $10 million they are going to spend to reach out better to minorities. they are also going to try to better use technology, something that they have struggled with in the last election, and hold their convention earlier so that the candidate can start using the election funds earlier. a couple changes they are trying to make as they try to regroup and move forward heading into

the 2016 election. a lot going on. vallejo police soiearching r a gunman that shot and killed a man. investigators have not given out any details on a suspect or motive. a motorcycle rider was killed in a multi-car crash on interstate have 80 near walnut creek. four cars were involved. a motorcycle, 350-z burst into flames after that collision. details of what happened remain unclear but a witness says the motorcycle and another car were driving recklessly right before. chp investigators are urging anyone who saw that crash to contact them. a follow-up right now to a traffic story in hayward that could throw you for a loop this morning literally.

crews finishing construction on the new hayward loop designed to ultimately ease congestion through that downtown area using a series of one-way streets. now, this morning is the first major test of that new route, up and running for rush-hour traffic and we will keep you posted. two things to learn from pete meet, christina loren, enjoy today's sunshine and bring an umbrella for maybe tomorrow. i am talking to my producers specifically to give you extra time. taking a live look at a beautiful start to the day over san jose. they are quite generous with me. as you can see, we have more sunshine coming up. the official sunrise is about 7:15. keep that in mind. temperatures are nice and crisp this morning, all across the state of ra kra, where we had some really unseasonable warmth all weekend long. la was in the 90s, palm springs, the triple digits.

today, a stark contrast. temperatures this morning right on track with our seasonal average. they are going to be a little bit above. 41, livermore, 45, pleasanton and 46 to start the day. good morning in fremont. here is one thing we have been dealing with. ai lot of improvement when it comes to our pollen levels. great news. a lot of people posting oen moo i facebook page about how bad the allergies have been. rain on the way will drop the levels significantly. 71 degrees inland. 68 at the coast. 69 coming up in the next report, i'm going to time out that storm system to your doorstep and let you know how much rain we are expecting. it will come into play across the bay area. you want to stick around for that. way, you will know when you can get outdoors about dodging showers. don't wash that car. mother nature will do it for you. 6:35. mike knows what could slow you down. first, i have to change that outside. don't wash the car.

the toll plaz. >> over the bay bridge backed up at 6:36 on this monday morning. the backup continues back past west grand avenue at this point. we are looking over to the maps where we have some slowing of southbound 880. castrol valley, an issue. sounds like a debris rs, a stal. making things worse. we will talk about the hayward loop that they just advised you about. 580 westbound, we have the slowing into livermore out of livermore toward dublin. we talked about that rippling eastward. makes things a little better. we have the slowdown. a lot of folks cutting through livermore and pleasanton. highway 84, things are a little slow south of stanley. it got a little worse, 680. the build is on coming out of livermore, south of 680 coming into sinol. we will talk about that when i can get to the screen.

a smooth drive for westbound 92. a new crash on 101 near the airport. i will give you details. i will check on that in the next few minutes. 6:37. still ahead, 500 students evacuated from the dorm overnight. we'll tell you about the suspicious circumstances leading police to a stash of explosives plus, deadly aftermath as a private plane slams into a neighborhood. what we just learned about what may have caused that jet to go down.

hundreds of students evacuated from dorms after police found explosives in the dorm on university of central florida campus after a fire alarm went off overnight. officers found a man dead and an assault weapon and improvised explosives inside the dorm. a total of 500 stew accidents have been evacuated from the dorm and the university has canceled classes through noon today. new details in a deadly private jet crash that hit three homes in south bend, indiana. investigators say the jet was having mechanical trouble before it went down. two people on the plane were killed. two others on board. one person on the ground are injured. investigators say they want to thoroughly search at least one of the homes today. even though everyone on the

ground has been accounted for. two ohio school football players are being convicted of raping an intoxicated teenage girl. that legal ordeal is far from over. ohio's attorney general is considering charges against anybody that failed to speak up after this brutal attack. a grand jury will investigate whether anyone else should be charged, including parents and coaches who may have helped cover up the crime. prosecutors say three boys saw something happen that night and did not try to stop it. instead, they actually recorded it with their cell phones. the photos and video later spread on social media posts and text messages. it is 6:41. coming up, the tragedy at the racetrack after a young boy dies at the hands of his cousin he idolized. >> we will tell you about the investigation into the full throttle crash that sends a race car skidding out of control at very high speed. plus, a traditional

sacrament for a pope who is not afraid to break with tradition. live to the vatican next. a beautiful sunrise over the city by the bay. enjoy the day! rain on the way as we head through tomorrow and quite a bit of it. we'll let you know how much we're expecting and when where you live. the traffic is here. a look at the south bay. we'll show you a better view of this slowdown coming up.

starting this morning, b.a.r.t. will be testing new rules for bikes. they want to see if bikes on board will slow down your morning commute. christie smith is live in oakland with more on the new policy and what you can do if you want to avoid it all

together. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the last time b.a.r.t. allowed expanded access for bicycles on their train, 62% of all their riders went online and thought it was a good thing. they agreed with it. this is round two. b.a.r.t. is allowing more access for bicycles. they can be on the trains all hours, even during the morning commute. cyclists are asked not to be in the first three cars during the morning and evening rush. right now, bikes are only allowed during noncommute hours to ease congestion. in august, b.a.r.t. ran a similar test but only on fridays during that month. now, one rider asked me this morning, why don't they have a designated bike car on the train. one of b.a.r.t.'s directors who is out there says it is really not feasible. the trains turn around. b.a.r.t. does not have a ka b caboose.

they are already making more room on all the trains. >> they are modifying all the cars. by the end of june, all the wind screens next to the doors are going to be removed providing more space for all of our passengers, not just bicyclists, near the door allowing them to get on and off the cars easier. >> reporter: bikes are also not allowed in the first car for safety reasons. one of the keys to all of this, though, is feedback. b.a.r.t.'s survey is up right now. if you want to weigh in on that at bart.gov/bikes. that will go to the board of directors and decide whether or not this might become permanent. christie smith, today in the bay. christina loren is back to tell us what is going on tomorrow. >> it might be your last day to

walk the dog comfortable. a live look. beautiful sunrise over san jose. a gorgeous day shaping. high clouds. none of that fog to report right here. let's give oakland some love this morning. hey, oakland. 6:47. beautiful day shaping up here as well. same deal, high mid-level clouds and not a lot of fog. we are getting 10 miles of visibility just about everywhere to start the day. we are looking really good. a gorgeous day shaping up. the rain is good. it has been a while since our last round of rain. 44 in san jose to start. 39, gilroy. let's talk about what we are expecting throughout the day. lots of sunshine headed our way. things start to complaining. we are going to hold off on the showers until about 5:00 p.m. tuesday when a widespread activity comes in. keep that in mind for your evening commute. by 5:00 a.m. wednesday, showers start to lighten up a little

bit. widespread rainfall on the way all the way from 5:00 a.m. tomorrow until 5:00 p.m. wednesday. we start to get a break between 5:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. clearing out in time for the weekend. all that fresh powder they accumulate in tahoe, you can hit it. it is going to be fabulous this weekend. as you know, spring starts on wednesday. those great tahoe days, they are starting to get a little bit numbered. i can tell you right now. i can looking at all the long-range models. 68 in fremont. temperatures drop like a rock. we will be at 60 even on wednesday inland. thursday into friday, temperatures start to warm up a little bit staying comfortable from the sun back out. at least to are a few days. we will hold on to that beautiful stretch of fair and dry weather. we are looking good. we will check your drive and see how well we are looking. that's why this is 101 north. you look at the key exits and heading north in the very most congested spot in san jose.

the map will show you what we are talking about. this is anywhere north of 680. you are heading right into here. the orange kicking all the way in past 880 and toward the airport. there is your 101. spots up towards capital expressway starting to slow. 87 slowing coming into downtown. 85 near the bottom really creeping up over towards saratoga avenue and that will move over towards the area before it compacts itself. we have slowing coming south. 680, slowing. 84 coming over. things are really slow right now. people tried to get out of the backup. we have folks bailing out towards first and all the backup from u from ulty ma. we will move over towards the map and we see the castrol

valley "y" has an improvement as the earlier incident cleared. over here shall the hayward loop, we talked about. things are moving pretty smoothly. we just now started seeing slowing making the split off jackson and mission and around. one-way traffic for the loop northbound here and southbound here. that's the adjustment we have made over the weekend. that will be an issue for the next week, week and a half. 880 through oakland, a live look out there shows a smooth drive as well. we are just picking up the volume in the toll plaza where the metering lights are back on. thank you very much. a memorial is growing for a 14-year-old santa rosa boy killed at a raceway north of sacramento. he was watching his 17-year-old cousin warm up for a sprint car race when the car lost control and crashed into the pit where he was standing. marla tallez joins us live in the newsroom. this whole family was involved in racing? >> reporter: the family has been racing for four generations.

noi it is not like chase johnson was a rookie. we have video of him racing last year in petaluma. to date, he has won 140 races and even won last year's spring car championship. that is the same race he was warming up for over the weekend in marysville when something went terribly wrong. he slammed into the pit crew where his 14-year-old cousin, marcus johnson, was standing. he was killed and so was another man, a 68-year-old from grass valley. investigators are looking into why marcus was in the pit in the first place, because he was not officially a part of his cousin's crew. his had father says he was simply there to help. the accident is a reminder of how dangerous the sport is. >> to be in the pit itself, you have to sign a waver saying whatever happens here, this track is not liable for. >> here is a look at the memorial that is growing for

14-year-old marcus johnson in santa rosa. these flowers and candles outside the muffler shop his family owns. he was an eighth grader. the cause of the crash has yet to be determined. officials are trying to figure it out. >> so very, very sad. vallejo's thrift center store will be out of business for a while after a pickup truck crashes right through its front door. the collision happening yesterday afternoon. firefighters say there were more than 40 people inside the store when the truck barreled through the doors and into a check-out station. four people, including the driver, were hurt. three of them had to be taken to the hospital. investigators at this hour are still frying to figutrying to f that driver lost control of his truck. >> sunol police are releasing a skrech of sketch of a man wanted for

kidnapping. he tried to kidnap a 12-year-old girl. he offered her a ride. she refused. he grabbed her. she was able to escape and run home. you see a sketch of him. white man, 20s, six feet tall with a thin build. last seen driving a silver four-door vehicle this afternoon, former santa clara supervisor, george shirakawa expected to plead guilty on misusing campaign funds, facing five felony charges and seven misdemeanors for misusing funds and lying to investigators. prosecutors say he spent the money on everything from partying and gambling to personal golf trips. if found guilty, shirakawa could spend up to a year in jail and be fined $50,000. a special election has been set for this june to fill his vacant seat. a trial in new york over its police department's stop and frisk program is underway in federal court. the controversial tactic allows

police to stop, question and frisk people on the street. many people say they were wrongly targeted because of their race. they believe this program is an unconstitutional invasion of privacy. a big support are of that stop and frisk policy is former new york police chief bill bratton, who has been signed as a police chief for oakland. many criticize because he supports the policy. critics worry it would lead to racial profiling in oakland. >> the u.s. supreme court hearing arguments on a controversial arizona law for residents to provide proof of citizenship before they can register to vote. it is meant to keep undocumented immigrants from voting. it could hurt citizens as well, particularly minorities, the elderly and nationalized citizens to might not have a driver's license or birth certificate

over 6400 signatures have been collected to ask billionaire, larry ellison to pay for the america's cup. the city is short on the fundraising to cover the costs. an online petition has since been created to urge him to help fund the event he will be racing in. the online forum is calling on him to pay the difference in the city's fundraising short coming so it doesn't have to tap into tax income to pay for the event. as we speak, preparations underway at the vatican ahead of tomorrow ace installation for the newly elected pope. pope francis. we take a look at the vatican. tomorrow, hundreds of thousands of people will be joining that celebration right there at st. peter's square. this is a traditional catholic sacrament for a pope who is showing he is not afraid to break from tradition, correct? >> reporter: you are absolutely

right, jon. in the first few days of his papacy, pope francis has really broken from the traditions of his predecessor. he has been very casual in his conversations, greeting people, very much a pope of the people if you will. a lot of people saying that he is really a humanized the papacy. hundreds of thousands as you talked about expected to be a part of the mass tomorrow. among them, dignitaries from around the world. that group landed in italy. today, the vice president meeting with italian leaders, getting a chance to talk with them before tomorrow's inaugural mass. yesterday was his first angeles or sunday blessing in prayer.

over 150,000 people packed in to and spilled out of st. peter's square yesterday. he was casual as we talked about, joking with the crowd before praying and then blessing them. it all ended when he told them, look, go have a great afternoon and enjoy some lunch. so, again, a very common place man who has a very uncommon job at this point and a very difficult job. a lot of people looking for pope francis to bring some change to the catholic church, which has struggled with in-fighting and c controversy as well as scandals. most of the events will be scripted. we know what is going to happen. a lot of people looking to that, to see what pope francis has to say during the homily and hint at some of the changes he could bring to the church. that's the latest live here outside the vatican. i am jay gray. >> let's get updated when it

comes to the forecast. >> we have great-looking weather to enjoy today. laura and jon, good morning to you. we want to start with a live picture, beautiful sunrise over foster city. throughout the day, dry. 70s, inland, bayside, 69 degrees. things start to change tomorrow. rain, isolated thunderstorms possible. we will take you to the forecast if you missed it, every 15 minutes throughout the "today" show. 6:58. you don't want to miss mike inouye before leaving. >> otherwise, you are going to hit the traffic. we are looking toward 880. you will probably hit it anyway. slowing. we see the southbound side coming into milpitas towards mission boulevard. for 880 just before you get here, farther north from the south 880 down towards 230, i will tell you about that. south 880 heading towards 238, a crash slowing things down. 6:59.

a final check of today's top stories > a north bay family mourning the loss of their 14-year-old son. marcus johnson died at a racetrack. his cousin, chase johnson, was driving the warmup when he lost control and crashed into the pit where marcus was standing b.a.r.t., now allowing bikes on trains during rush-hour commute. that is starting today. this all part of a week-long test to see if trains can handle the actual load during peak hours. the only place you can't take your bars is in the first car. they are continuing a new loop. the first major test is up and running before rush-hour traffic. perfect for a monday, right? >> exactly. >> thanks so much for joining us. that is what's happening "today in the bay." we're back at 7:25 with a live local news update. indeed, we are.

go out and have a great day. we'll see you tomorrow. good morning. breaking news. a late-season storm set to impact millions of people from nchts good morning. a storm set to impact people to new england, bringing freezing rain and snow. we will tell you how bad it will get. a neighborhood in indiana evacuated after a prive jet slams into three homes. at least two people are dead, three others injured. we are live at the scene. and the people's pope, francis breaks from tradition, personally greeting well wishers at the vatican as final preparations are made for his installation. look whose there to launch coverage of the historic week today, monday, march 18th, 2013.

good morning. welcome to "today" on monday morning. i am matt lauer. >> i am savannah guthrie. good to see maria shriver again. >> you have been there a couple days, you'll join us for the installation of pope francis. what's the mood like there? >> reporter: everybody here seems very excited, very hopeful. you saw some of that video at the top of the show with the pope going out, greeting people. people really have a feeling this is going to be a new era, a new kind of pope. the people are really excited about it. >> we're looking forward to talking to you more. you have a story on how he chose his name. as i said, you'll join us tomorrow for the installation. maria shriver at the vatican. and new developments in a case that divided an ohio community. two high school football players convicted of raping a teenage girl. should other students, teachers, even parents that refuse to cooperate with investigators now face prosecution?